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Chancellor (New Republic)
'Chancellor', also known as '''Chief of State', was the title given to the leader of the Galactic Senate of the New Republic. Mon Mothma of Chandrila was the first individual to hold the title following the formation of the New Republic. Though the office had little power, Mothma's term allowed her to forge a broad political consensus about the future of the Republic that allowed a stable government to come to power. After her term ended, however, differing views emerged in the form of political factions, the Centrists and the Populists, who disagreed on the extent to which the Republic should have had strong centralized power. A new and more powerful executive office, First Senator, was proposed to replace the office of the chancellor, but the debate in the Senate ended with no consensus. Thirty years after the formation of the Republic, during the conflict between the First Order and the Resistance, Lanever Villecham served as the New Republic's chancellor until his death during the destruction of the Hosnian system. Powers and Abilities Officially, the Chancellor was the President of the Senate and civilian Commander-in-Chief of the New Republic Defense Force. The position was referred to by a number of titles: "Chancellor" by the media, "Chief of State" by government offices, and multiple variations based on translations from Basic. When addressing the Chancellor, they were usually referred to as Chief, or Chancellor, and sometimes, but controversially. Supreme Chancellor, as in Chancellor Fey'lya. The Chancellor acted as Chief Councilor of the New Republic Provisional Council. A Chancellor was elected by a "fifty percent plus one" majority vote of the New Republic Senate. If the Chief of state was incapacitated, incommunicado, or dead, the chairman of the Ministry Council selected an acting Chancellor from among the following: any former Chancellor, the current Minister of State, or any former Minister of State. This person would then act as an interim Chancellor until the proper Chancellor returned or the Senate could elect a new Chancellor. The Chancellor could be recalled by a majority vote of the Senate on presentation of a petition of no-confidence by a majority of the Ruling Council or Inner Council, or by a quarter of the members of the Senate. The election of a Chancellor could be blocked by the Ruling Council on a unanimous vote. In practice, the power of the Ruling Council to void an election and initiate the recall of a sitting Chancellor meant any candidate proposed by or approved by the Ruling Council was likely to be elected by the Senate. The Ruling Council consisted of the chairbeings of the six Senate councils and the President of the Senate (Chancellor). The Chancellor had the power to select any member of the Ruling Council to conduct the business of the Senate in their absence from that body. The powers of the Chancellor of the New Republic were derived from the charter of the Chancellor, and they were granted after the formation of the New Republic and the establishment of a new Galactic Senate on Chandrila. The first New Republic chancellor, Mon Mothma, was given the emergency powers that were once granted to Supreme Chancellor Sheev Palpatine of the Galactic Republic during the Clone Wars. Mothma, who spent the duration of the Clone Wars arguing against the increased powers of the chancellor, intended to eliminate the emergency powers from her position. Though the powers granted her the authority to send New Republic forces to fight and die wherever she chose, she did not want such a responsibility and felt that it was a poison to democracy. Instead, she submitted to the will of the Senate, even in military matters such as the disarmament of the New Republic Starfleet. History The origins of the New Republic chancellery came from the Galactic Republic, where the Supreme Chancellor served as the leader of the Galactic Senate and the Republic itself. During the Clone Wars, Supreme Chancellor Palpatine amassed more and more executive powers until, at the end of the war, he had enough power to transform the Republic into the Galactic Empire and declare himself sovereign ruler of the galaxy. The position of Chancellor continued into Alliance to Restore the Republic, where Mon Mothma was given the title of chancellor while serving as the Alliance's political leader. After the death of Emperor Palpatine during the Battle of Endor, the Alliance formed the New Republic. A new Galactic Senate was established on Mothma's homeworld of Chandrila, and Mothma was elected as the first Chancellor of the New Republic. She focused her tenure on eliminating the emergency powers granted to her by the chancellery's charter, as well as proposing a large-scale military disarmament to occur once the Galactic Civil War between the Republic and the Empire came to an end. The end of the war and the signing of the Galactic Concordance, the peace treaty with the Empire, saw the achievement of that proposal through the Military Disarmament Act.2 Further reforms carried out by Chancellor Mothma included the rotation of the Senate's capital amongst member worlds.6 That decision, as well as the decision to not headquarter the Senate on the former galactic capital world of Coruscant, did much to convince star systems that the New Republic would be different from its predecessor governments. Though the office of the chancellor had little central authority, Chancellor Mothma was credited with forging a political consensus during her term in office that allowed the New Republic to establish itself as a lasting power. After her term in office ended, however, her successors failed to create that same political consensus, a consensus that Senator Leia Organa credited to her charisma as a leader. Twenty-four years after the Battle of Endor, two political factions—the Centrists and the Populists—had emerged with divergent views on the role of the central government and the power of the executive. Lady Carise Sindian, a Centrist, eventually proposed the abolition of the office of the chancellor and a redrafting of the Republic's constitution to create a new position: First Senator, which she proposed would have strong authority over economics and the military. A fierce debate emerged amongst those who favored a strong central authority and those who worried that a position like First Senator would lead to the rise of another emperor. In 10 ABY, Supreme Chancellor Revear Jensen would return from hiding, and he would become the new Chancellor of the New Republic. However, he would be accused of corruption by many senators. Many heard rumors that they never returned from confrontations with Jensen. Years later, a Jedi Knight leading the new Jedi Dynasty called Noman Karr would be accused of leading a large massacre involving the deaths of more than a hundred senators. Chancellor Jensen would trial the Jedi into imprisonment for a life sentence on Naboo. However, it would be revealed that Jensen framed the Jedi, whom both were manipulated by a powerful force entity known as Darth Nox. This had a major blow in Jensen's career, and made him unpopular, electing a new chancellor. In the period of the rise of Sycthian, a man called Vladimir led the New Republic, and assisted Syn Zuko and the Galactic Alliance in fighting the Eternal Empire, until the chancellor's assassination in Rebellion Day, a galactic-wide festival celebrated to celebrate the defeat of the Galactic Empire and the restoration of the Republic. Towards the end of 16 ABY, with the crisis of the Eternal Empire, and in 17 ABY, with the upcoming threats from the Shadow Army commandeered by Ragnar the Black, Mon Mothma served as Interim Chancellor until 18 ABY. Following Organa Solo's post-Corellian Insurrection hiatus in 18 ABY, Senator Ponc Gavrisom was elected by the Senate to continue the leadership of the New Republic. During this time, the Caamas Document crisis nearly crippled the New Republic, and Gavrisom vainly attempted to unify the shattered coalition. In 23 ABY, Borsk Fey'lya, a bothan senator became Chancellor of the Republic, and in doing this, won and lost many allies, as was his wont during his constant, ever-ambitious quest for power. His rivalry with the reputable Admiral Ackbar, dislike of the New Jedi Order and anti-Human sentiment led many to possess an unfavorable opinion of the Bothan, though Fey'lya's obsession in his pursuit of power was mirrored in his belief that his actions should enable the best for the most. His fear of the usurpation of his power was reflected in his antagonistic attitude to the armed forces, whom he perceived as a contender to politics, and, having failed to assume control of the New Republic military during the attacks of Yana and Sycthian, the Bothan would consistently undermine its reputation, most notably during the early days of the Eternal War when it served his interests to refuse to acknowledge the existence of the threat of Sycthian. Senator Organa became a leading candidate for the role of First Senator, despite her reservations about the creation of the office. Her candidacy was derailed, however, after it was revealed by her political enemies, including Senator Ransolm Casterfo and Lady Carise, that she was the daughter of the late Sith Lord Darth Vader. Senator Tai-Lin Garr replaced her as the populist candidate, but Garr was soon assassinated. The vote to abolish the role of chancellor and replace it with First Senator was tabled soon thereafter. While this chaos was happening, Syn Zuko was elected as a de facto ''chancellor, due to him having the leadership skills to protect the Republic. Twenty-nine years after the Battle of Endor, the office of chancellor was still active and Senator Lanever Villecham of the Tarsunt system was elected to the post. He pursued improved trade relations with the neutral worlds of the Trans-Hydian Borderlands, and he disagreed with Organa—who had become the leader of the Resistance—that the First Order represented a threat or a violation of the Galactic Concordance. Organa, who formed the Resistance to combat the First Order when the Republic refused to intervene, was ultimately proven right when the First Order used its superweapon, Starkiller Base, to target the Republic. It destroyed the Republic's capital world of Hosnian Prime, killing Chancellor Villecham and the rest of the planet's population. During this period of crisis against the First Order, the New Republic's chancellery was suspended, due to the threat the First Order posed. Syn Zuko of the Galactic Alliance decided to lead the remnant of the New Republic that survived the destruction of Hosnian Prime in the Galactic Alliance, protecting them. Others flocked to the Resistance, looking up to Leia Organa as a leader. List of chancellors/Chiefs of State * Mon Mothma (4 ABY–10 ABY) * Revear Jensen (10—14 ABY) * Vladimir (14—17 ABY) * Mon Mothma (17 ABY) (interim) * Ponc Gavrisom (18—20 ABY) * Makato Naez (20 - 21 ABY) * Ponc Gavrisom (21 ABY - 23 ABY) * Borsk Fey'lya (23—27 ABY) * Pwoe (27 ABY) (self declared; never officially recognized) * Cal Omas (27—28 ABY) * Syn Zuko (28—33 ABY) (serving as ''de facto) * Lanever Villecham (33—34 ABY) Elections * New Republic Chancellor election, 10 ABY * New Republic Chancellor election, 23 ABY * New Republic Chancellor election, 28 ABY Behind the scenes The position of chancellor of the New Republic first appeared in the 2015 novel Aftermath, written by Chuck Wendig. In the Expanded Universe of books, comics, and games, which has since become the non-canon Star Wars Legends brand,9 the leader of the New Republic was known as the Chief of State. Like in canon, Legends stories also depicted Mon Mothma as the first leader of the New Republic. Appearances * Aftermath (First appearance) * Lost Stars (Mentioned only) * Aftermath: Life Debt * Aftermath: Empire's End * Bloodline (Mentioned only) * Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens (First pictured) * The Force Awakens, Part I Category:Governments Category:Canon